The General's Betrayal: The Corruption of the Moon Kingdom
by Helenala
Summary: In their years as Senshi, the Scouts have been taught that the Generals were traitors of the Silver Millennium. That they are deserving of eternal punishment and lost of titles. But What happens if the Moon Kingdom turned out to be corrupt-crippling under its own weight from poverty, famine, and idle officials? What caused Beryl to have the ability to destroy the Moon so easily?
1. Chapter 1

**The General's Betrayal: Corruption of the Moon Kingdom**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Sailor Moon. I will not make any original characters in this fan fiction unless absolutely necessary. Original characters will never be the focus of my fan fiction stories.**

"All Rise!" Queen Serenity ordered. Serenity sat idly on her throne. She looked upon the face of her ministers, waiting for a report. Her secret lover rose with the rest of the ministers. That day they had court as normal and Serenity gave her word of yes or no. The topic of the day dealt with a certain scandal committed by a governor who managed a province on Mars. This governor, who held high trust by the people of his subjects, was accused of the embezzlement of money that was meant to fund schools and hospitals. This same governor stood ten meters in front of Queen Serenity with his hands in chains.

The investigators have found more evidence against him than for him. It was not abnormal for a governor to be rich in the Silver Millennium, but this one...had too many luxuries for an individual of his status. In addition, his bank records have shown that an unusual amount of money had been accumulated in a very short time. Officials have complained about receiving a lesser amount of funds regardless of tax increases, budget cuts, and the giving of more money into other state services. The proof stood strong.

The people of his province were not happy, but they loved the governor. Now, he had lost their trust. The governor held his head down and begged, "Please, Your Majesty! Have mercy on me! I swear I am innocent!"

Queen Serenity responded, "I hereby sentence you to twenty years in prison. Your wife must spend five years of that time in jail as well. And your children must pay a thousand golden pieces to the state."

The governor give a small smirk for a half a second then returned to the emotionless face that he held when he had entered the room. He was carried outside the throne room with the stares of the court. Several more issues were discussed then court was dismissed. Serenity stepped into her palanquin was carried to her bedroom. She went her drawer pulled several bags of money out. A kiss caressed her neck and a voice greeted silently, "Had a good day my queen?"

"Yes, I have." she responded. "I was deciding how much of his money to give you. He must be thankful that he gave me it because if he hadn't, I would have never gave the lighter punishment."

"You played it off well. No one will ever suspect that you told him to pay you part of the earnings of his thievery in order to get a lighter punishment. Don't you think?"

"I don't know."

"Be careful Lovely."

"Thank you, darling. I'll space my attempts out more to drive away suspicion."

Serenity gave a tender kiss on the lip to her lover as she hugged around his neck. They both laid on the floor kissing each other on the chest and massaging one anothers' backs. Then, Serenity slipped off the lower under garments of her dress as her lover did the same. They enjoyed each other in ways they shouldn't for nobody knew of their relationship.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Page 1

The courtroom of Venus was loud with the sound of harps, flutes, drums and other instruments. Queen Venus talked to Adonis, which disgusted the rest of the court. They walked from painting to painting, discussing each detail as though they had never been there before and gave stories of the fantasies that would form in their mind upon viewing each one.

Meanwhile, the rest of the court continued their party activities. Some people were doing three illegal things: smoking, drinking alcohol, and gambling. The Queen knew of such things, but condoned them for such actions were only punished by Serenity when the citizens learn of it. Furthermore, it was nighttime and the only courtiers invited were those who did such illegal things. Whenever there was a new courtier or a visitor, precautions were made to keep scandals from breaking loose. One of these precautions was the long process that people below a certain rank went through to enter the palace. There were two ways person could prevent this procedure: they must wear the symbol of Queen Serenity, meaning that they are a messenger from the High Queen herself or the must be an official at the palace whom is marked down as being a performer of the three mentioned acts.

Writing your name and who you were was the first step. After your name is logged, one of the guards would hurry into the palace and pull several levers located in a small locked room attached to the castle's lobby. Each lever rung silver colored bells in different parts of the royal palace. The ringing of these bells resembled that all prohibited actions must be hidden away quickly, telling the hearers that a visitor capable reporting was coming. Meanwhile, soldiers would check you for weaponry and unauthorized objects. Then, you must show legal papers showing who you are and wait through a twenty minute period to verify the legitimacy of your records while being supervised. Such waiting sessions were mere covers in the name of security to buy time to hide the truth. A soldier, on the other hand, did nothing except mark his name, given that he worked for the palace since he is not permitted to tell anyone about palace activities outside of the edicts their rulers signed.

Knowing all the details mention above, Queen Venus did not worry excessively about getting revealed. She simply proceeded to take turns in her story telling with Adonis. When her turn reached, they were at a painting of Queen Jupiter. Jupiter had her eyes on a statue of Queen Serenity as she sat at a water fountain. She did not hold a happy expression with her chin resting in her hand's palm and the elbow of the same arm on her knees. She was in a garden with trees of countless breeds and birds flying in the distance.

Venus told her story, "I believe that Jupiter is sad. I imagine her husband has many concubines and she was in love with him. She looks at Serenity because she arranged the marriage knowing the man was a playboy. Queen Jupiter then divorces her husband and confesses the issue to her High Majesty who doesn't care."

"Did this really happen?" Adonis asked.

"No, I made it all up."

"That was a good-" Adonis was cut off by the silver colored bell. So she and Adonis ran out of the party as courtiers rushed to hide wine bottles and smoking pipes. Fragrances were sprayed across the room to mask the smell of smoked drugs.

Venus and Adonis entered into the library and sat on a two person chair. Adonis whispered, "Think it's Lord Malachite, your Highness?"

"I do not know. It could also be Queen Jupiter or Serenity's messenger. They are also supposed to come down as well."

"Just in case they wants us, I something to show you." Adonis removed some of the books off one of the shelves. Then, he reached his hand into where the books once were and pulls out a brick which he drops on the floor. He puts his hands in again, retrieving a dogeared book. Adonis carried it with both hands to Venus lest the torn pages fell on the ground or the faded out cover separated from the book. "Why hide such an ugly thing, Adonis! The maids should have thrown that out! To the trash, Adonis! To the trash!"

"Majesty..." Adonis hesitated, "This book's a rarity to this kingdom and can't ever be replaced. I've read it and it has info that is of great interest to you. Queen Mars read the preface to me. My life is a great risk if anyone else saw this book."

"What's the danger in a book?"

"It holds secrets. The publication date and title tells half the story." Adonis explained. He lent the book to Venus. "The Ruin of Venus," Queen Venus read on the title.

The Ruin of Venus...what an interesting title, she thought. And it's written by one of our queens, too. Why would this book be such a secret?

Venus opened the book to the first page. According to the copyist, apparently the Queen of Saturn, the book was written about two hundred and fifty years ago. The Queen of Venus at that time was the author. It is clear that the book was hand copied in a hurry. As Venus scan through the pages reading one word here and there, cross outs were seen more time than normal and errors were more prevalent than what would be expected from a copyist of high rank. In some cases, it appeared to be that words were accidentally left out. Although she could barely read the words with the speed at which she was scanning, it was clear that the book was going to be a difficult read because letters were fading and dark ink smudges scared the pages where many of the words once were. As a matter of fact, more than half of the book wasn't even finished.

The door knob began to turn causing Venus to swiftly cover the book with the largest available pillow. A slave girl came in and bowed. The girl said, "Your Majesty, Queen Jupiter has arrived."

Venus followed the girl out of the library. The girl led her through several hallways and sets of stairs. Jupiter was waiting in the foyer. Upon seeing her fellow royal, Jupiter curtsied and so did Venus. They were both escorted to Venus' throne room where the party was a few minutes ago. Venus sat on her throne, relieved that her noble subjects hid all signs of anything illicit. Anyone could tell that some sort of event was going recently, since table of food and drinks remained. But all alcoholic beverages were hidden, and the scent of opium pipes was replaced by perfume and incense. A lot of the courtiers remained in the room though not as many though some were returning.

Despite all of this, the meeting between the two queens was able to function. Jupiter began first, "Fine party. I wish I had come earlier, my fellow Majesty."

"Thank you. I didn't expect you to be come at this time otherwise I would have told you. Perhaps we could set up another occasion together."

"It would be my pleasure. I must inform you though that Jupiter is gradually raising out of its debts."

"Oh, what good news! If only my kingdom had such fortune. It seems that Mercury's the only other kingdom in recovery."

"Your land will recover eventually," Jupiter responded. Then, she continued in a her lowest audible voice, "There's something else I want to say too..."

"What is it?"

"You remember Prince Endymion?"

"Of course." Venus replied. Jupiter didn't answer back at first, but rather asked to be moved to a place with less people. Since private chambers weren't appropriate for a foreign princess to visit, they had to settle for the balcony outside one of the ballrooms. Even then, one guard still supervised them. When alone, Jupiter revealed(in the secret coded language that she used that only she, Venus, and Mars knew), "I learned from Neflite that Endymion is courting Beryl. He has no interest in Princess Serenity at all. He's only playing around with her."

"Why? Shouldn't you have reported this to the Queen?"

"No...informing her will-will...how will I word it?-"

"It'll break her heart it she finds out!"

"Venus...if you or I tell anyone...what will you think it will look like to the people? Besides, the Moon Princess is likely going to think we're trying to break them up so we could have him. Plus, any method we have at our disposal to tell her is carries too heavy of a risk to use. We could be killed if anyone finds outs we are the senders. And..." Jupiter pauses to think. "How will we explain that our source is you know who from you know where?"

"Oh yes," Venus said.

"How far are you in finding the next step to our plan?"

"Not very far. How far are you?

"A little further. I think Prince Endymion's up to something."

"What could he be up to?"

"I don't know, my friend. But it's a bit suspicious that he's dating Serenity considering his relationship with Beryl. Especially since communication between the Moon and Earth is strictly forbidden. He could get in trouble with his own people, you know."

"I agree Jupiter, but I doubt he's risking as much as we think he is if he's willing to do what he's doing."

"Point."

"Jupiter, I believe we should gather more learn more about our predicament before we act any further. I also recommend we go back to the party before curiosity calls."

"I guess so," Jupiter said. They left the balcony. Venus walked back to the library. Adonis sat on the floor analyzing the images within some of the books since he was illiterate. Venus asked him, "Where's the book?"

"I hid it again, your Majesty."

"Show me it after the ball," Venus ordered impatiently and he followed her out the room. The next hour was spent as like a normal ball, until Jupiter left the palace for the night. Being a friend of Venus, Queen Jupiter knew what was going on behind palace walls including the procedures. It was important when taking into account their true intentions.

When Jupiter was a certain distance away from the castle, the silver bells rung again, meaning that alcohol may once again be drunk and gambling may resume. Smoking, however, was not allowed for the rest of the night.

The party went on for hours longer, until all the courtiers who had not drank or smoked had went home. The intoxicated members of the court, had to stay in the palace to keep the secret. Venus set out for the library at two in the morning, after all the attendants except the servants had left. Adonis was already there five minutes before her, leaning against the book shelf. None of them hesitated to inspect the room before Adonis removed the book from its hiding spot. He then took Venus' coat which hung at the back of a chair and slid it into one of its inside pockets just as they had planned. The book was undetectable.

Venus put on the coat. She walked tiredly to her bedchamber and gently closed the door. Her dressers slipped her into her nightclothes. She then ordered them to leave, something that would not make anybody wonder, for this is something she did on many nights. One candle remained lit. This enabled her to sneak the book out of her hanging coat and read the preface.

**Preface**

** Dear Princess of ****Venus****,**

**I am the Queen of**** Venus. I am in exile, near the capitol, but close enough to command my nation. For fifteen years, my armies have fought the enemy. But we have not prevailed. We are on the brink of surrender. That is why I am writing to you. I hope that somehow, somewhere this book will keep a record of the true story of the fall of the Venusian Kingdom. Furthermore, there are four other copies of this book, and this one is the last. The previous copy is to be sent to Mars by means of my messenger. You are currently reading the Venusian copy. The location of each book can only be found by means of reading this copy. Be careful if you choose to carry this. If you are caught, your only chance of survival will be ruined forever.**

Queen Venus stared at the contents. Her vision gradually blurred as she drunk more alcohol. Realizing she can't read anymore, Venus locked the book within a small chest and hid it underneath her bed. Her sleep was difficult. Deep down inside of her, she knew the book must be kept a secret.

Author's note:

Adonis was another name for Kaitou Ace in the Sailor V comic. He was also called Danburite and served under the four generals of the Dark Kingdom. It is unknown to me, however, whether these generals were Prince Endymion's guardians for I have not read the comic in a long time. At this point in the story, Adonis is not working for the dark kingdom.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The Queen of Mercury lied in her robe. Her baby rested in the doctors arms. He wiped the fluids off the child with a towel, holding an expression of shock and horror at the same time. The bastard, as the child had to be called, cried loudly. The doctor said in a neutral tone, "It's a boy."

He left the room and the workers of the court clapped in unison without the joy that was normal for such an occasion. This child was born illegitimately, and the father was gone. This child did not have the father of his two older brothers. The newborn's father was unknown to anyone except the queen herself. A palanquin was carried to Mercury and she was transported to her sleeping quarters.

In the Queen Mercury's castle, the basement contained two things: a dwelling place for the queen's maids and slaves and a prison. Neither was pleasant. The prison was cold in the winter and the coverings for warmth were not efficient for the inmates. Many died of disease. A prisoner was confined to his cell all day and night with nothing to do except lay on his bed of hay or play with the drawstring bag containing his clothes. Racing against others to eat one's twice a day bread ration also became a sport.

The slaves lived better. They explored most of the castle at will and would receive meat every other day. Their diet was composed almost entirely of bread and the bits of food couriers would cut off their food to feed to them like dogs. Their attire was enough for satisfaction. Slaves wore brown all the time and boots. Whenever the short warm season came, itchy shoes with the appearance of dark socks were worn. No adornment was allowed except for winter coats. Besides these things, a slave's life was one and the same as a prisoner's.

Slaves gossiped just like their masters. One of them said, "Today, her Majesty gives us another son. This time no father. What a waste! Three children and none of them could take the throne!"

The second slave checks around before responding, "She's corrupting our kingdom! If I had money, I'd bet that the father of this one is some commoner at a brothel."

"A miracle that she has anymore face. Our masters still like her."

"Not the people. Word on the street is she spends so much on learning what's useless for a queen to know, she's neglecting the empire."

"I don't know. It is right to say though that medicine is no good for a queen to know."

"You don't need to tell me." The gossiping slaves can talk no more. Laundry is calling and they go their separate ways.

Queen Serenity sits at her desk with her hands folded together. Her daughter sat across from her. Princess Serenity's eyes were pointing at her hands on her lap. She had perfect posture and her face held the emotion of a rock in the perception of a stranger. Her mother, of course, read her emotions like a fortune teller reads a crystal ball and struggled not to show her own. She said, "So, you want to go to the Earth..."

"Yes, Mother."

"...and you studies are falling behind."

"I'm sorry."

"And your testing..."

"I promise I'll work harder."

"I need to see." Queen Serenity said.

"Mother, please!"

"If you do well on your next test, you can go."

"Yes, your highness," Princess Serenity replied. Her mother dismissed her. A messenger came in with a box in his hand containing scrolls of mail. He placed it on the desk and bowed. He said, "Mail for your Majesty."

The Queen opened the box and read piece after piece. She had one letter from Mercury and the others were reports of the monthly activities of local governments. Financing, crime rates, and new laws were some of the info in those letters. When the queen got to Mercury's, she frowned and whispered to herself. "Is there anything wrong, your Highness?"

The Queen gives him no attention. She crumples the scroll and forcefully throws it. "SUCH IS CARELESS!" she yells. "_ANOTHER BABY!_ That needs _punishment!_ It's _ruining _the kingdom. Bring me the secretary!"

The messenger runs.

The Leader sat on the bed within the room the innkeeper reserved for her. She was holding a secret meeting with the most feared rebel group in the Moon Kingdom, the Dark Crescent Union. The Dark Crescent Union had many members across the solar system including on the Earth. Anyone suspected to have had dealings with them were put to death without trial and anyone could be accused. Whenever they met, it was in small groups to reduce the risk of getting caught. The Leader did the same when meeting with them. She met at night in isolated places. Other union members, sent her encrypted mail to serve as updates in order to reduce the frequency of the meetings. Getting caught was rare. The mention leader was the head of the Dark Crescent Union's Mars division.

The Leader spoke first, "I have found a delay in our plans. Delivering more weapons to the Earth Kingdom is crucial."

The responder said, "This means that we will not know if Earth has advanced further."

"Exactly. But with the weaponry we gave them, Earth will soon be ready to aid. All we really need is allies."

"The people have been getting angrier month by month. They are already revolting across the Mars Kingdom! The government of Saturn has already declared itself part of our union, although Serenity doesn't know. But three planets against six...leaves us in a hole. You must get there somehow!"

"Earth's army had decided to help me, but...the means our Moon allies offered failed."

"But your safety! Protestors! Marches!"

"It's a scandal to try. The Queen Serenity makes exceptions to her favorites and even she must hide _that._"

"But-."

Another member interrupted, "Don't worry, sir. We'll get another chance."

Someone else said, "While we wait may I milk knowledge from our other units then?"

The Leader ordered, "No. You will create an evacuation shelter for us to retreat to. Priest Hino, You are to provide a food supply for these shelters and create escape routes. Priest Thorn, go to Jupiter. Learn the enemy."


End file.
